


Pillow Talk

by indoorsy



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Casual Sex, F/M, Implied Relationships, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, One-Sided Attraction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-13
Updated: 2017-03-13
Packaged: 2018-10-04 08:03:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10272017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/indoorsy/pseuds/indoorsy
Summary: Reno advises Elena on the complexities of workplace relationships. Reno/Elena, implied Reno/Rude, one-sided Elena/Tseng.





	

Elena quickly covered herself with a crumpled sheet as she attempted to catch her breath through shallow pants. She swept a sweat-slicked blonde bang away from her face as she groaned, “Oh god, what did I just do?”

“Hey,” the redhead beside her responded as he lit the cigarette dangling from his lips, “save your self-loathing spiral ‘til I’m at least outta the room.” He grinned teasingly as he drew in a long drag.

“Reno, what the hell is wrong with you, you can’t smoke in my bed!” Elena looked to him in wide-eyed disbelief, but she quickly relented. “…okay, give me one.”

Reno courteously obliged, his slender fingers extending a stick of nicotine like an olive branch. Elena gingerly placed it between her lips and Reno gave an almost chivalrous smile as he leaned in towards her and lit the cigarette himself.

“This isn’t something I do,” Elena prattled nervously as she took a short drag off the cigarette, coughing slightly as the orange embers glowed. “Hooking up like this, I mean…”

“Relax, Lainy, it was just sex. Not that big of a deal.” Reno haphazardly flicked ash from his cigarette – eliciting a glare from Elena.

“Maybe not for someone like _you_ ,” Elena quickly retorted. “But I – ”

“If I’m not mistaken,” Reno interjected with an edge of annoyance in his voice, “ _you_ came onto _me_.”

Elena blushed. “Y-yeah well, that’s…” She rubbed her temples as her alcohol-induced haze began to clear. Sure, she had been drinking, but not nearly enough to excuse _this_. “Oh god,” she uttered as a stricken look crossed her face, “you used a condom, right?”

Reno looked to her incredulously as he continued inhaling from his cigarette. “Uh, duh. You can never be too wary of Upper Plate broads and their various nasties.”

“You don’t know a damn thing about me.” Elena grabbed a coffee mug off her nightstand and indignantly stubbed out her partially-smoked cigarette.

“Calm down,” Reno drawled, “it was a joke, yo.” His lips curled sardonically.

“It wasn’t funny.” Elena sulked as she turned away from Reno.

“My bad.” Reno coaxed a few more drags from his cigarette before he reached across Elena and retrieved the makeshift ashtray. He gave her a sideways glance as he extinguished the butt nonchalantly. Afterwards, Reno perked up inquisitively and turned himself towards Elena. “So what’s up? You and Chief have a falling out?” Amongst sex, booze, and nicotine, gossip was an irresistible vice for Reno.

Elena stiffened. “I’m not about to talk about that with _you_.”

“Okay then,” Reno remarked casually. “Guess I’ll get going – ”

“Wait,” Elena spoke faintly. “I just – I can’t tell if he is actually into me, or leading me on, or if he just doesn’t know what he wants.” She quickly buried her face into her pillow – something about Reno’s sudden air of indifference seemed to make the words spill from her mouth.

“Hmm.” Reno leaned back against the headboard contemplatively. “So you decided to allay your frustrations by seducing me.” A sarcastic grin crept across his face.

“Please,” Elena huffed, “it hardly took the effort worthy of being called ‘seducing.’” Despite her flippancy, Reno was right on the mark. Deciphering motives was an indispensable skill as a Turk.

“Fair enough.” Reno looked solemn for a moment. “You know, I can relate more than you might think. And – this is advice from me as your colleague and maybe even your friend, if you’re feeling generous – but it ain't gonna work out.” There was no malice in Reno's words – just sincerity and a vague hint of empathy.

Elena turned back towards Reno, slightly perplexed. “You can relate?” Her jaw hung open slightly as she awaited Reno’s explanation.

Reno's eyes slid closed lazily. “Being Turks ain't exactly conducive to love. It might seem that way, I know, since we're really the only ones who know what this job is like and what it does to a person. So – it kinda goes beyond fraternity, it’s almost psychological.”

Elena mused over Reno’s words. She wasn't accustomed to his bouts of rumination.

“But – this is where things get messy – being a Turk is all about doing the job you were assigned, right? Well, falling in love with a fellow Turk just complicates things, you know? It becomes a liability. Those kinda emotions are a detriment to decision-making, efficiency, and logic. It’s no good. Can get you killed, even.” Reno's eyes were open again and narrowed pensively – another unfamiliarity to Elena.

“Wow, Reno,” Elena groaned, “you sound like you've done a lot of thinking about this.” She shrank back into the covers, not particularly impressed with Reno’s conclusions.

“Yup.” Reno smirked. “It’s not all doom and gloom, though. I can give you another piece of advice as well.”

“Oh boy, I can't wait,” Elena mumbled.

“The best you can hope for is really good sex.” Reno’s tone was almost boastful as he arrogantly crossed his arms behind his head.

Elena’s eyes widened as her expression shifted to skepticism.

“The key is to wait ‘til after a high stakes mission. Something with lots of action. If it went balls-up, even better. All the adrenaline – that’s your ticket to pound town. Trust me.” Reno’s eyes were almost sparkling now – as if he had cracked an arduous security code or blown up unsuspecting infrastructure.

“That sounds like manipulation,” Elena stammered.

“It ain’t manipulation, it’s biology,” Reno replied assuredly.

“Wait a minute – ” Elena nearly fell off the bed as she fully processed Reno’s words. “Y-you and Tseng?!”

“What? No!” Reno scoffed. He ran a hand through his unruly hair with a roll of his eyes.

“Then who – _oh_.” A hot blush engulfed Elena's features as she envisioned the remaining Turk and Reno. The pair certainly did have their fair share of missions gone awry.

“Anyway,” Reno began with a smug smile, “I'm bored now. You wanna go again or shall I bid thee adieu?”

Elena gave an exasperated sigh.


End file.
